Just my thoughts right now about Splinterlands, I am open to any respectful discussion.
I really like the game and have a silver deck, 1 plot and SPS staked.
However, it must be said that the game lacks some things.
One is the fun of playing especially in the lower levels, the focus right now is almost exclusively on the earn factor for investors (big or small).
The idea of blockchain games is very good, but I think that the gameplay should still be in the spotlight so that a GAME can be successful.
Meaning even if you don't invest it should just be a good gaming experience.
Without investment the game is like a slightly better version of rock, paper, scissors.
Once you understand the game, skill is no longer relevant , only how big your bank account is.
I know that in the future there will be a lot of things to include, SPS as rewards, land, mini games, etc..
However, I don't think these changes will change much of the actual gameplay to generate new players.
The reality is that you play 5-10 games a day to farm your chest and that's it.
And I know that there will be changes in this direction as announced in the last AMA.
The rest of the Splinterlands universe is just about when are the packs sold out, when SPS Moon,
Stocking up on cards to sell again later for 10x.
Sure when Splinterlands 100x a lot of new players will come, but then only because the investment opportunity is seen and not the gameplay.
And what after Splinterlands has achieved the success?
The threshold for new players will be all the higher than right now, cards 100x, land-plots will not be available, new packs for 10$ etc..
This could allow a company to reach a critical maximum threshold relatively quickly, because the investors need to be bigger.
I think once the player experience improves for everyone the earnings will automatically increase with new players.
What I have seen so far from the Splinterlands team I found very positive. The transparency through the weekly AMAs, the resources that flow back into the company, the constant changes and adjustments.
Please don't get me wrong about the economy of Splinterlands, I'm a business student myself and can get excited about complicated markets and structures, but I think this aspect should be optional for new players.
Maybe the complexity comes through the spells of the land plots, in the lower leagues, however, I see heir again a probably high entry threshold for new players.
Let's assume that a new player invests as much as for a AAA computer/PlayStation game, so about 70$. With that you could not put together a competitive deck to get into a higher Elo our having a fun game against others, which is a problem for me.
I Play on 2000 rating myself and have about 500$ in cards, gameplay is maybe 10% harder than in bronze even with such a "high" investment.
Sure I earn airdrops, vouchers etc. I don't play more than 10 games a day because why should I. To farm 50 (0.2$)Dec a day ? To boost my rating without needed power for the league.
I could try to get into the lead-boards but I would have to increase my investment by a lot.
I think this just contradicts the concept of a game and hope that the future announced changes will take these aspects into account.
I really believe in the game and its future, but I also find it important to show the current state of the game.